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Jordan's Syrians Are Leaving — and Many Are Risking Home Rather than Europe
The situation in Jordan is deteriorating for Syrian refugees, especially for those outside of refugee camps, so a growing amount are now heading back to their wartorn homeland.
by Sara Elizabeth Williams
September 29, 2015, 11:05am
Des réfugiés syriens assis sur une remorque au camp de Zaatari en Jordanie. (Photo par Jamal Nasrallah / EPA)
Jordan's Syrian refugees are disappearing in droves. Those who can afford it are flying to Istanbul, and then paying smugglers to hustle them into unseaworthy boats on a journey to Greece. A growing number of others are going somewhere arguably more dangerous: home.
On September 22, UNHCR Jordan boss Andrew Harper tweeted a photo of a pair of toddlers sat among a haul of luggage: two of the 340 refugees leaving Jordan that day, headed north for Syria.
UNHCR keeps track of how many Syrians head home on the buses that leave Zaatari camp several days a week, and 340 is a new record. It is part of a months-long trend whereby a low number of arrivals from Syria and a growing number of departures mean Jordan is seeing its Syrian population drop.
It's not completely clear how many Syrian refugees live in Jordan. UNHCR has registered around 630,000 people, but government and NGO research suggests the number is around 1 million. For every two who live in a refugee camp, eight live in Jordan's towns and cities, renting shabby to middling accommodation and trying to carve out some normalcy in an increasingly abnormal situation.
Today 340 — Andrew Harper (@And_Harper)September 22, 2015
Jordan's camps offer a safety backstop: there is food aid, there are medical facilities, schools, and plenty of NGO programming. At Zaatari, there's a sense of community and people have a market street, which means an informal but thriving economy. Azraq camp is the opposite — there are few residents and no market street, which means no economy and, according to several residents interviewed for this story, no hope.
But the real hopelessness is outside the camps, where refugees must fend for themselves.
Unlike in Lebanon, Syrians are forbidden to work in Jordan without a permit, and these are notoriously difficult to arrange. As a result, many Syrians work in the informal economy, in shops, restaurants, and garages for cash in hand. They earn very little and have to avoid detection by the authorities: Syrians caught working illegally have been arrested, jailed and, deported.
Jordan's security, police, and intelligence services run a very professional, tight ship and they are actively looking for Syrians breaking labor laws. Those Syrians who do work illegally say they are terrified, but without working they will starve or be out on the streets.
A general view for the Zaatari Syrian Refugee Camp, near Mafraq city, Jordan, September 19 2015. Photo by Jamal Nasrallah/EPA
"I can't do any more here, I need to get out of Jordan. I feel scared all the time that I'll get caught working," 28-year-old Waleed [not his real name] told VICE News. He is from Busra al-Sham in southern Syrian and has been living in Jordan for three years. With a degree in business, he's working six days a week, 10 hours a day, in a supermarket in Amman. He takes home 250 Jordanian dinar ($352) a month.
Waleed is desperate to get to Europe and is weighing up the smuggling option. He'd have to pay for a flight to Istanbul, and then around 3,000 euros ($3,370) for a spot on a boat. The risks are nothing compared to the prolonged nothingness of his life in Jordan, dependent on diminishing aid and staring at a future he describes as "treading water."
"I just want to build a better life and a future by being active again," he said.
Related: More Bases, MIGs, and an IDP Camp: What Is Russia Up to in Syria?
Waleed and many other Syrians' lives got markedly tougher in August, when the UN's World Food Program (WFP) was forced to slash funding, effectively cutting off 229,000 people it categorized as "vulnerable" (the 211,000 people it calls "extremely vulnerable" still get 10 dinars per person a month). Those 229,000 people last got food assistance on August 6, but it was only a half-measure at 5 dinars. Now, they are feeling the pressure.
Jonathan Campbell, the WFP's emergency coordinator for the Syria Refugee Operation in Jordan, thinks a drop in food aid is one of the factors driving refugees back over the border.
"Assistance needs to continue now so people don't have to leave — and the ongoing reductions in assistance is one of the reasons people are leaving. We need to keep food vouchers and other essential assistance going. People cannot support their families on nothing," said Campbell.
More middle-class families, or those who haven't exhausted their reserves, are taking advantage of a Syrian Embassy offering new passports, no questions asked, and a closing window to squeeze into Europe. Those who can't afford the airfare and traffickers' fees are looking homewards.
'If this doesn't happen, we'll be devastated because we've prepared ourselves psychologically and we have built hopes for a better future.'
Despite ongoing aerial bombing, including regular barrel bomb attacks on opposition-held civilian areas, many Syrians point to recent gains by the mostly secular Free Syrian Army (FSA) in Daraa province, just over the border, as a sign that normal life is returning. Around 65 percent of the province is under opposition control, and as yet, no organized Islamic State presence has been established. Desperate and poor in an expensive country that feels more hostile by the week, they're taking their chances.
Earlier this month, UK Prime Minister David Cameron spoke of the need to provide greater support for refugees in their host countries. The UK has been one of the top donors to WFP's Jordan program and many of the country's most active NGOs, but four years into a refugee crisis that is only growing more hopeless, more aid might not amount to much. People want to work. And the glimmer of hope held out by news channels looping footage of Germany welcoming Syrians is lighting the way for a growing number of families.
"The refugees here are squeezed more and more. The deterioration of the aid system that was set up here to respond to the crisis, this is something ordinary Syrians are feeling — the WFP reductions, people have lost free medical care, they can only work illegally," Adam Coogle of Human Rights Watch said.
Related: The Islamic State's Biggest Threat to Jordan Isn't Violence — It's Economics
"People feel like in order to protect their families and have some sort of future they have to try something drastic. In many cases, this means trying to reach Europe by sea," he said.
For some lucky families, hope has come in the form of resettlement, or an offer from a third country. Iman, a pregnant mother of two living in Irbid, is waiting for a call from the Canadian Embassy to tell her that her husband and kids can come in for an interview. A church group in Ontario has agreed to sponsor the family, and the paperwork has been signed, sent, and acknowledged. The family had hoped to start the school year in their new home. Instead, they wait.
"The kids also ask continuously, when will we fly to Canada? We're concerned about the delays. Days are going by so slowly while we wait," she said. Despite assurances by the sponsor group that all is on track, she worries something will happen to derail the dream.
"If this doesn't happen, we'll be devastated because we've prepared ourselves psychologically and we have built hopes for a better future."
Thinking back to the violence and fear that drove her to Jordan, and those dark days last summer when her husband almost took the boat to Europe, she has to steady herself. If Canada doesn't work, the only alternative left may be going home.
Follow Sara Williams on Twitter: @saraewilliams
Tagged:VICE NewsIslamic StateSyriamigrationrefugeesjordanAssadFree Syrian Army


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Estonia wins 3rd prize in the European Big Data Hackathon
On 13–15 March in Brussels, the Estonian team won the 3rd prize in the "European Big Data Hackathon", organised by the European Commission statistical office Eurostat. The Estonian team was led by Innar Liiv, an Associate Professor at Tallinn University of Technology.
The first prize was awarded to Croatia and the second to France. 22 teams, each consisting of three members, from 21 countries took part in the competition.
The Estonian team included Innar Liiv, an Associate Professor of Data Science at Tallinn University of Technology and a Cyber Studies Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Oxford, as a university representative, Rain Öpik, CTO at DeltaBid, as an industry representative and Toomas Kirt, a Principal Analyst of Statistics Estonia.
The task of the competition was to prototype a product within limited time that would analyse big data and other possible data sources and answer the question about how to use data and analytics to support policy makers of the European Union in reducing the mismatch between jobs and skills at regional level. In Europe, there are many countries with labour markets demanding people with certain skills, while in other countries, people with these skills are looking for work. The competition aimed to find out whether data would help to better understand the problem or whether it is possible to develop data visualisation tools that would allow a quick overview and discovery of interesting relationships and patterns.
"Our team concentrated on understanding the roots of the problem and on achieving a clearly distinguishable solution," said the team leader Innar Liiv. "Before we started programming, we read through a large number of documents, starting with President Juncker's letter to Marianne Thyssen, strategic documents and budgets of the directorate dealing with employment issues to the suggestions and reports of the European Parliament committees which deal with the same subject," Liiv explained the approach of the Estonian team.
The Estonian prototype was given the name "Megatrend and Intervention Impact Analyzer for Jobs" and the aim was to visualise the inner structure of the labour market based on the similarities of job skills and to visualise as one image both the labour market demand and supply and the affecting so-called megatrends. As a distinguishing factor, the Estonian team used as an external source the sensational article by the Oxford Martin School, published some months ago, where those jobs were named, which are at biggest risk of disappearing if the trend of automation and robotisation continues. The list of jobs in the scientific publication had to be transformed into European standards and comparatively analysed. This work resulted in images displaying together the labour market demand and supply, the mismatch and as additional information, also the impact of robotisation on the labour market. The last item enabled to also answer the question about whether robotisation targets the current gap between the labour market supply and demand or, instead, further increases unemployment.
The teams were evaluated by a panel of 20 members, consisting of policy makers from many directorates and divisions and industry representatives from Oracle, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, SAP, SAS, Accenture, etc.
Mariana Kotzeva, the Acting Director-General of Eurostat, who presented the award pointed out that the Estonian team went beyond the expectations and tried to look to the future.
"I am delighted about the success of the Estonian team in the hackathon. This confirms the good level of Estonia as an e-country and our scientists in the field of data analytics and big data. Big data is the topic of the future and as a leading e-country, we wish to discuss this matter also at a high-level conference on the free movement of data in the single digital market on 17 July during the Estonian presidency of the Council of the European Union," Urve Palo, the Minister of Entrepreneurship and Information Technology, commented on the success in the hackathon.
The Estonian team used Python, Amazon RDS Postgres, Hadoop cluster with Hive, Spark and other technology.
Award ceremony and the presentations of the prototypes of the winning teams can be watched at https://webcast.ec.europa.eu/ntts-2017-15.
School-Level Policies and the Efficiency and Equity Trade-off in Education
Seminar of the TTÜ Department of Economics and Finance:
Wednesday 8 March 2017
15:45–17:00 in room SOC-214
SIMONA FERRARO, KAIRE PÕDER
Department of Economics and Finance, TTÜ
Estonian Business School
Abstract: This paper identifies the relationship between pupils' Family Background, their mathematics scores, and school-level policies, using the 2012 Programme of International Student Assessment for Italy and multilevel modelling. School-level policies have played a leading role in recent school reforms in many countries, but there is no straightforward empirical evidence for how they affect pupils' outcomes and the equality of educational outcomes. Our findings show that that only some school policies intensify the Family Background Effect - (educational equity) and affect student outcomes (educational efficiency) simultaneously. We find that competitive schools are able to screen students by selecting higher socio-economic status parents, which mainly harms equity without having much effect on efficiency. There are some policies which allow some trade-off between aforementioned objectives, mainly policies related to management schools.
The seminars of the Department of Economics and Finance (DEF) usually take place on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month. The seminars are public and the purpose is to strengthen discussion and research cooperation. The presentation will last approximately 45 minutes followed by 15 minutes of discussion, in total one hour. The seminars will generally be held in English. Copies of the paper will be available at the seminar. The DEF seminar series is organised in collaboration with the project "Institutions for Knowledge Intensive Development", which has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 734712. Questions regarding the seminar can be addressed to Prof Karsten Staehr, karsten dot staehr at ttu dot ee, organiser of the seminars.
A mobile phone apps' test center unique in the Baltic states is open at Mektory
On February a test center unique in the Baltic states for mobile applications – Smart Lab – was opened at TUT Mektory.
Students' newest applications are available for trying out at the opening. Solutions of start-ups such as FreePee, Rentmarket, Qminder, Lingvist and Code2Kids are presented on the smart devices of the lab. It is also possible to ride an electric bike – parameters of its battery can be observed on a smart device.
The purpose of Smart Lab is to make top conditions available for Estonia's undertakings and the students in order to create new and globally successful applications.
"For the first time, there has appeared an environment in Estonia, where it is possible to seriously test the applications of smart devices. We are waiting for the environment to bring together the best developers, which will in turn increase the number and quality of apps created in Estonia. The Smart Lab is outfitted with top quality devices, which enable the testing of created applications on any platforms," commented Tiit Tammiste, Eesti Telekom's Director of Technology.
"The app lab creates the students studying in Estonia globally competitive conditions for putting together new applications. Tallinn University of Technology and also the IT College have the opportunity to use the environment for study activities and thereby also bring practical know-how to university's subjects. However, for the undertakings, this is an environment where they can test their product before marketing it," said Tea Varrak, Vice-Rector of Innovation and International Relations.
The Lab is located on the mobile and media floor of the Mektory Innovation Center. In addition to the lab there is also a corner for brainstorming and holding meetings, the development work is supported by the mobile and media lab.
There are tens of different smart devices at the new testing lab, which enable testing new applications manually as well as run automatic tests and thereby guarantee the users best experiences. The environment is meant for software developers, students, scientists, testers, mobile companies and undertakings ordering apps.
At the end of November of 2015 TUT Innovation and business center Mektory, the IT College and leading Estonian IT undertakings Eesti Telekom, Samsung, TUT, ASA Nortal, StagnationLab, Applaud, MobiLab and NGO IKT Demokeskus signed a cooperation agreement, which created the apps' testing environment at Mektory. The Center is also sponsored by Microsoft, HP, Valge Klaar and LG. The idea of creating an app lab came about due to IT undertakings' common interest to increase the capabilities and business potential of applications created by Estonian undertakings. The center was created as it is not feasible for each undertaking to build a separate center and the universities lack the necessary infrastructure for a large-volume study activities. By now the creation of the lab has been completed.
Photo gallery by Heidi Pihlak, TUT Mektory
Additional information: Krõõt Nõges, TTÜ press representative, phone 620 3594, mobile 5303 6163, kroot dot noges at ttu dot ee
President Ilves gave a public lecture on the future of IT
The President of the Republic of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, gave a public lecture on the future of information technology on 7 April in the TUT assembly hall.
President Ilves analysed inevitable and progressively increasing dependence of our everyday life on the digital world. As a state largely dependent on digital solutions, we experience and feel the benefits of the digital era, but also the risks long before others.
"The security environment surrounding us deteriorated significantly in 2014. The fact that war is being waged in Europe was also reflected in the cyber incident statistics in Estonia in 2014. But there are other critical issues to be considered. In addition to national defence we need to think about civil liberties and democracy," President Ilves said.
The Head of State gave the lecture at the invitation of the Student Council of the IT Faculty, he was welcomed by the Dean of the IT Faculty, Gert Jervan.
"IT Future" is series of lectures on the future of the information society delivered at Tallinn University of Technology throughout the year. The lectures are delivered by professionals who have an innovative approach to IT and a different perspective compared to the teachers, the aim of which is to diversify students' knowledge. The next lecture will be delivered on 28 April by Kaido Koort and Urmo Keskel from the Certification Centre on the topic "Future identity technologies".
Previously Henrik Roonemaa (Digi), Vahur Metsala (NetGroup), Ralf Morawietz (Kühne + Nagel) and Kestutis Patiejunas (Facebook) have performed at TUT.
Additional information: TUT Student Council of the IT Faculty, Kristin Ehala, kristin dot ehala at tipikas dot ee
Karsten Staehr: Why Tax Fuel?
Karsten Staehr, professor of International and Public Finance, on fuel taxation.
Fuel taxes are taxes on petrol and diesel used for transportation. For what purposes are fuel taxes used in other European countries? Are they used to finance the building of roads?
Some countries earmark taxes on petrol and diesel for road building, public transportation or the traffic police, while other countries do not earmark the taxes for any particular purposes. This is largely a matter of bookkeeping as there is no logic in any particular tax being spent on any particular purpose. Taxes should be levied so that they harm the least and public spending should go to the areas where it is most beneficial.
Earmarking of the revenue from different taxes to particular purposes does not make sense. In the extreme Estonia would then need to introduce a tax earmarked for spending on primary schools, another tax earmarked for street lightning and yet another one for defence. Taken to the extreme, such earmarking of taxes would make it impossible to manage the government budget and it would stand in the way of reforms and changing policy objectives.
What are the consequences in raising the fuel tax to the state, private citizens and to the economy?
The consequences of raising the fuel tax are straightforward. Those driving a car or truck will pay higher taxes and they may perhaps try to drive less or buy a car using less fuel. The government will have a higher tax intake. In this respect the effects of an increase in the fuel tax would resemble any other tax increase.
The effect on the overall economy will be small as long as the tax increase is modest. There might be a bit less car use and this might reduce congestion and pollution and this will generally be a good thing. The costs of some businesses may increase but the effect will also here be small. The planned increase of the excise taxes on fuel is supposed to bring in 46 million euros next year, while GDP, the overall size of the economy, is forecast to be around 22 billion euros. In other words, the planned tax hike amounts to 0.2% of GDP in 2016. In 2017 the tax increase amounts to perhaps 0.3% of GDP. It is unlikely that the planned tax increase would have any major effects on production and employment.
What are the functions of excise taxes in general?
There are two different types of taxes. The first type is broad-based taxes such as social tax, income taxes and value-added taxes. It is difficult to avoid paying these taxes for economically active persons by changing economic behaviour. One would still need to pay income tax if one changes from one job to another, and one would still need to pay value-added tax if one changes from eating potatoes to eating rice. Economic theory posits that broad-based taxes are preferable, because these taxes do not cause people to change behaviour and make people do things they really do not want to do.
The other type of taxes is taxes where a specific product or a specific economic activity is taxed. One example is excise taxes on alcohol, cigarettes and energy. The main purpose of such taxes is precisely to make people change behaviour. Taxes on alcohol might lead to less drinking and this is good for other family members and society at large. Taxes on petrol and diesel may lead people to drive less or buy more economic cars, and this might reduce congestion and be good for the environment.
In conclusion, the main purpose of broad-based taxes is to bring in tax revenue without people changing behaviour, while the main purpose of excise taxes is to make people change behaviour.
Do the high level of excise taxes on fuel undermine the competitiveness of Estonia compared to other EU countries?
The planned hikes of the excise taxes on petrol and diesel are relatively small and will have a minimal impact on the costs of companies in Estonia and hence the competitiveness of the Estonian economy. There could be some border trade problems if the prices of petrol and diesel will be much higher in Estonia than they are in Latvia and Russia. This is a situation which must be monitored carefully.
It should be recalled that taxes on car use are very low in Estonia compared to many other EU countries, in particular our Nordic neighbours. Many countries have very steep excise taxes on the purchase of cars, while the value-added tax is the only tax on cars bought for private use in Estonia. Many countries also charge an annual levy for the use of a car. If anything, Estonia has very low taxation of cars and car use, and this is of course what has led many Estonians to drive large and uneconomical cars.
So we should not be worried about the planned increase in the excise taxes on petrol and diesel?
Nobody likes to pay taxes, but the experience from southern Europe is that it is important that the government runs a prudent fiscal policy and raises taxes to fund new expenditures. One of the founding fathers of the USA summed it all up by pointing out that there are only two things that are certain in life: death and taxes.
Questions by Krõõt Nõges, TUT PR Officer.
A global engineering education conference was opened by the president of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves
"Scientists dream about doing great things. Engineers do them." James A. Michener, American author.
On March 18-20, Talllinn University of Technology hosts the IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference EDUCON2015 "Engineering Education towards Excellence and Innovation". The conference was opened by the president of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves.
The IEEE EDUCON conference will provide an international forum for academic, research and industrial collaboration on global engineering education. Particular fields of interest include contemporary science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM); also the importance of engineering education in Estonia and in the world.
The aim of the conference is to improve the quality of teaching and learning in STEM fields. E-learning, active learning, creative study environment and e-labs are only some of the topics covered in the conference.
The key note speakers of the conference are Tarmo Soomere (TUT, Estonia), Stephanie Farrell (Technological University for Dublin, Ireland), James Uhomoibhi (Ulster University, United Kingdom).
More than 250 participants from 40 countries are expected at the conference. That includes lecturers, teachers, scientists and students from 150 different universities and research institutes. Also present at the conference will be the representatives of universities of applied sciences, student organizations, the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research, MathWorks and BMW AG.
In addition to European countries, the conference will also see guests from USA, Canada, Brazil, Ecuador, Japan, China, India, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuweit, Tunesia, Egypt, Jordan, Singapur, Philippines, Nigeria, New Zealand, Malaysia, Panama, Cuba, Israel, Ukraine, Russia, and other countries.
From Estonia scientific papers will be presented by representatives of Tallinn University of Technology, Tallinn University and Estonian National Defence College.
IEEE -- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers – is an international organization which develops and promotes the application of new technologies all over the world. IEEE was founded in 1884. IEEE is also active in Estonia, ¾ of its members are connected to TUT.
Conference website: http://www.educon-conference.org/educon2015/
Merili Deemant, TUT Open University, tel +372 620 3607, merili.deemant@ttu.ee
Chinese New Year and Cultural Day took place at TUT
On February 26, TUT International Relations Office organized the Chinese Cultural Day to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
At 11am, TUT Rector Andres Keevallik and His Excellency Chinese Ambassador to Estonia Mr Qu Zhe jointly opened the TUT-Xinhua News Agency Photo Exhibition.
This Exhibition will be inaugurated and displayed on February 26 till March 5, 2015 in the corridor connecting the Library and Social Sciences Building.
By juxtaposing images of Estonian people in everyday life and ceremonial events, the exhibition aims at illustrating the Estonian people, tradition, festival, nature and culture. The audience will ponder how different we are as cultures and how similar we are as humans.
After that, Mr Qu Zhe gave a public lecture on "Building the Silk Road Economic Belt and Sharing Opportunities for Prosperity". He introduced the connotation and key features of the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative as well as favorable conditions for implementing it. The Ambassador also talked about the opportunities it will bring to the world and Estonia.
The Ambassador stressed that the Silk Road Economic Belt is open and inclusive system which is to promote economic growth for all parties through better connectivity and comprehensive development plans. China will not seek predominance during the construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt, and the initiative is not going to disrupt other existing cooperative mechanisms. Not only an economic initiative, the Silk Road Economic Belt is also a bridge connecting different civilizations and promoting better understanding among peoples, which is essential for regional peace and stability.
Representatives from Xinhua News Agency Tallinn Bureau and Huawei Corporate Baltic Office also shared their experiences of conducting business in Tallinn and their future development plan. There was a healthy interaction between the speakers and audience during and after the open lectures.
There was a considerable interest among TUT staff and students to learn more about the Taiji after 30 min introduction and practice. A talk is going to hold an event training group at the Student House for participants to pursue the harmony in body and mind.
More than 50 people participated the get-together event of dumpling-making and tea ceremony. For many, it is their first time making the traditional Chinese food. Not only had they learned the basic skills to make dumpling by hand, but also shared a moment of joy and fun with fellow students.
Text by Keit Kissel, TUT International Relations Office.
Scientists at Tallinn University of Technology have worked out a unique method of producing nanofiber
Tallinn University of Technology (TUT) has worked out a unique method of electrospinning, which makes it possible to produce large quantities of extremely thin yarn or nanofiber in the future.
This material, which is thinner than a hair's breath, is used in medicine as well as in electronics, mediated the news programme "Aktuaalne kaamera".
Tallinn University of Technology has also filed for a patent for its electrospinning device.
Preparation for production of nanofiber is currently on the way in a glass cabinet at a laboratory in TUT department of polymer materials. Once the spinning machine is working it is reminiscent of a spider's web spinning in the wind. Nanofiber can actually be several times thinner than a spider's web or the breath of a hair.
Regular fabric, which is used for making clothes, may consist of a few dozen interwoven spun fibers. Nanofiber may consist of hundreds of fibers. Electrospinning means turning polymer into fibers in a high voltage electric field and even though machines like that have been created before, the one created at TUT is unique.
"The principle of twisting together in a vortex of air, that the speed of air flow is very high, is what makes this machine effective. We can take in large quantities of polymer solution at great speed and therefore create large quantities of yarn, in comparison to technologies this far," explained Andres Krumme, professor at TUT department of polymer materials.
What to do with such a thin yarn when there is no shortage of fabric in the world? Use of so-called smart textiles is still in its infancy, but for example, it is possible to interweave into such fibers polymers, which conduct or store electricity.
Medical industry is also interested in such materials, more so, because the device at TUT is compact and easy to use in a hospital laboratory for example.
"Such fibers could be spun into growth substrates for cells, as cells like to grow on nano-scale fibers, which would be various skins grown in artificial conditions, veins, also medical sewing-threads, which could contain substances aiding healing of wounds," said Andres Krumme.
The electrospinning machine, which was built in cooperation with TUT, several cooperation partners and the Archimedes foundation, was worked on for two years. At the moment it is awaiting a patent.
Author: Marju Kaasik.
Source: 31.01.2015 Aktuaalne kaamera.
Why is the price of oil so low?
TUT Professor Staehr talks about oil prices.
* Why is the price of oil so low?
The large decline in the dollar price of oil started in the summer of 2014. At that time the price of unrefined oil was around 100 dollar per barrel and it has since fallen to around 50 dollar per barrel. Both supply and demand factors are behind the decline.
Supply has increased very rapidly in recent years. This is in large part due to the oil shale revolution, where a new drilling technique, fracking, has made it possible to extract oil from layers of shale deep underground. While the oil shale in Estonia lies in the upper layers of the earth, they lay much deeper in other parts of the world. New technology has made it possible to extract oil and gas from shale deep underground and this has led to extra supply of oil from the USA and other countries. Oil production has also increased in countries such as Iraq and Brazil.
The increase in demand for oil has declined due to the weak economy in Europe and slightly lower growth in China and other Asian countries. The gradual switch to renewable energy has also lowered the increase in the demand for oil.
The combination of rapidly increasing supply and a lower increase in the demand has put downward pressure on the oil price. That the decline has been so rapid reflects that supply and demand are price inelastic in the short term, i.e. supply and demand do not react very strongly to price changes. This means that a sudden oversupply of oil must be followed by a large price decline to re-establish equilibrium. However, supply and demand are likely to adjust more strongly over time. Oil companies have in recent months announced postponement of new projects and closing of some high-cost projects, so the growth in supply will likely decline during the next year or so.
* Price of oil is very low. How directly and fast will the price of oil influence the price of gasoline for cars in Estonia?
Changes in the oil price is typically carried into gasoline prices rather quickly. The decline of the oil price has already led to substantially lower gasoline prices in Estonia. Gasoline prices in Estonia have declined by something like 20 percent since the summer last year. This is of course less than the 50 decline in the dollar price of oil in the same period, but this reflects that the dollar has appreciated against the euro and that refining and transportation costs and government taxes have been largely unchanged.
* Is it possible that the price of gasoline will fall even more?
This basically depends on future developments in the dollar price of oil and the exchange rate of the dollar against the euro. It is fair to say that nobody have been able to produce reliable forecasts of either of these prices. This applies to market participants, commentators and academic economists alike.
Numerous academic papers have sought to model the dollar oil price. The modelling uses statistical methods to find the most important factors and how these factors influence the oil price. Factors such as world economic growth, the price of opening new oil fields, the price of other energy forms and interest rates seem to be of importance. However, while it is possible to construct reasonable models of the oil price in the past, none of these models have been successfully applied to forecast future oil prices. Something similarly applies to the dollar-euro exchange; while models may explain the development of the exchange rate in the past, no model or theory is of any use in forecasting exchange rate developments. This empirical finding has been called the Meese-Rogoff Puzzle since it was demonstrated more than 30 years ago. The conclusion is that since it is virtually impossible to forecast developments in oil prices and in the exchange rate, it is also impossible to forecast developments in the gasoline price in Estonia. The gasoline price can go up and it can go down, but the reality is that nobody can predict these movements.
* After the lowest point how fast the price of gasoline will go up? What are the most significant factors?
The experience is that changes in the dollar oil price and in the dollar-euro exchange spill over into gasoline very quickly. This means that if the dollar oil price starts increasing or the euro starts appreciating against the dollar, then the effect will be seen at the pumps in Estonia within a week or a few weeks.
Questions: Krõõt Nõges, TUT PR Officer.
A robot turtle will help underwater archaeologists to inspect shipwrecks
The Robot Safari in London Science Museum will see the world premiere of the underwater robot U-CAT, a highly maneuverable robot turtle, designed to penetrate shipwrecks.
U-CAT's locomotion principle is similar to sea turtles. Independently driven four flippers make the robot highly maneuverable; it can swim forward and backward, up and down and turn on spot in all directions. Maneuverability is a desirable feature when inspecting confined spaces such as shipwrecks. The robot carries an onboard camera and the video footage can be later used to reconstruct the underwater site.
"U-CAT is specifically designed to meet the end-user requirements. Conventional underwater robots use propellers for locomotion. Fin propulsors of U-CAT can drive the robot in all directions without disturbing water and beating up silt from the bottom, which would decrease visibility inside the shipwreck", says Taavi Salumäe, the designer of the U-CAT concept and researcher in Centre for Biorobotics, Tallinn University of Technology.
"The so called biomimetic robots, robots based on animals and plants, is an increasing trend in robotics where we try to overcome the technological bottlenecks by looking at alternative technical solutions provided by nature ", explains Prof. Maarja Kruusmaa, a Head of Centre for Biorobotics.
Underwater robots are nowadays mostly exploited in oil and gas industry and in defense. These robots are too big and also too expensive to be used for diving inside wrecks. Shipwrecks are currently explored by divers, but this is an expensive and time consuming procedure and often too dangerous for the divers to undertake. U-CAT is designed with the purpose of offering an affordable alternative to human divers.
U-CAT is part of an EU funded research project ARROWS, which is developing technologies to assist underwater archaeologists. The technologies of the ARROWS project will be tested in the Mediterranean Sea and in the Baltic Sea, two historically important but environmentally different regions of Europe. "In the ARROWS project, the U-CATs would work in cooperation with larger underwater robots and together with image recognition technologies for discovery, identification and reconstruction of underwater sites, would facilitate the work in all phases of an archaeological campaign", says Dr. Sebastiano Tusa, an underwater archaeologist from Sicilian Regional Government.
In London Science Museum, the team will show the U-CAT robot as well as its interactive downscaled models u-CATs operating in an aquarium. Robot Safari is open for visitors from 28 November to 1 December.
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/visitmuseum/Plan_your_visit/events/festivals/robot_safari.aspx
Prof. Maarja Kruusmaa, (+372) 51 83 074, Maarja.kruusmaa@ttu.ee
Centre for Biorobotics, Tallinn University of Technology www.biorobotics.ttu.ee
ARROWS project website www.arrowsproject.eu
Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/109554908@N08/
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGGBK4d-So8&feature=youtu.be
Formula Student Team Tallinn overall winner in Italy
Formula Student Team Tallinn, the joint team of Tallinn University of Technology and TTK University of Applied Sciences became the overall winner in Italy in the competition of electric formula.
The competition took place in Italy, on the Riccardo Paletti motor racing circuit, where 64 teams from 20 countries competed both, in theoretical knowledge and driving tests.
The Estonian team demonstrated high level in defending their theoretical work. Thanks to its marketing strategy business plan and the technical design of the vehicle it was one of the three teams, who reached the finals to present its expertise. The team was able to eliminate technical problems in the speed tests that took place in the last two days and the drivers realized the potential of the vehicle by showing the best times in the Autocross and Endurance races.
Overall winner of Formula SAE Electric Italy
Autocross 1st place
Endurance 1st place
Acceleration 2nd place
Business Presentation 2nd place
Engineering Design 3rd place
Skid-pad 4th place
Cost Report 9th place
Before the competition in Italy the FS Tallinn team competed in Austria (on the Red Bull Ring) and in Hungary (in Györ). In the competition in Austria the team achieved the very strong fifth place. Special prizes (the cups of the 2nd and 3rd places respectively) were awarded for energy efficiency and skid pad test of the vehicle. At the competition in Hungary, the car was unfortunately disqualified from the endurance race since the obligatory light characterising the status of an electric vehicle failed. The failure in Hungary aroused eagerness to fight and to demonstrate the potential of the vehicle and the team in Italy.
The team would like to thank all its supporters, who have believed in the capability of Estonian youth. The major supporters besides Tallinn University of Technology and TTK University of Applied Sciences are Ehvert Mission Critical, E-Profiil, PKC Group, Viking Motors, Auto24, KH Energia Konsult, Baltic Bolt, Brandner PCB, Oshino Electronics Eesti OÜ, Uddeholm, Baltic Bolt, Bestra Engineering, Ministry of Education and Research, Estonian Research Council, SKF, Attila, Scuderia Nordica, Hydroscand and Eliko.
Mr Teet Praks
Formula Student Team Tallinn
Phone +372 56 111 234
E-mail: teet@formulastudent.ee
www.formulastudent.ee
www.facebook.com/FSTeamTallinn

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Aegean Salted Bruschetta — Curio Spice Co.
A super simple summer appetizer that celebrates the best tomatoes of the year!
Rub the toasted bread with the cut side of the garlic and then drizzle on a bit of olive oil. Top with chopped tomatoes and finish with a sprinkle of Aegean Salt.


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U.S. consumers are discharge annoyance over the BP oil spill, demonstrating at gas stations and accumulated offices, boot up abutment on Facebook and waging a apish accessible relations attack on Twitter.
But their action to BP's administering of the crisis has yet to accomplish analytical mass, and any attack to dissuade barter from fueling their cars with BP is acceptable to aching the small-business owners who run the stations and accept little or no aftereffect on the British oil giant's revenue.
Most Americans — seven out of 10 — say BP has done a poor or alone fair job in administering the April 20 able-bodied blast and discharge in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the Pew Research Center, which advance accessible opinion. The Obama administering accustomed hardly bigger marks, with 57 percent appraisement the government's acknowledgment poor or alone fair.
In ablaze of this discontent, BP may accept agitation charging a exceptional amount at the pump for its products, said Tom Kloza, arch oil analyst at Oil Amount Information Service.
BP's petroleum articles can be awash at added outlets beneath added cast names, authoritative a customer avoid boxy to cull off. In any case, he said, amount is the better agency free area barter buy gas.
Several U.S. groups, including the customer babysitter Accessible Citizen and Vermont-based Democracy for America, accept alleged for a BP boycott. Historically, activity boycotts accept had basal appulse on companies' revenue.
Appropriate BP, a attack aimed at accepting the U.S. government to appropriate BP's assets and redistribute them to those damaged by the spill, affairs a anniversary of demonstrations at gas stations and BP offices beyond the nation.
The movement to appropriate BP's assets is accepting arena on Facebook, area at atomic bristles groups are blame the cause.
There is additionally a bluff Twitter feed, BPGlobalPR, that purports to be the oil company's online persona. The abusive augment has added than 114,000 followers, compared with the official BP — America feed, which had beneath than 10,000 on Thursday.
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Here's what you can expect back from Uncle Sam.
April 15th is right around the corner, which means you should have already filed your taxes, or you should be in the process of filing.
Since tax refunds are predicted to take longer this year, the earlier you file, the better. For a better idea of when exactly your refund will show up, take a look at this table.
Although you shouldn't be banking on too hefty of a r efund, it's nice to get a little money back in your pocket.
To get an idea of just how much you can expect back, Debt.com created a map using data from the IRS that shows the average tax return in each state.
According to the data, the IRS collected close to $3.1 trillion in gross taxes in 2014 and issued almost 118.7 million refunds, which amounted to more than $373.5 billion.
Connecticut has the highest average tax return of $3,126, followed by Texas and New York. Vermont has the lowest average of $2,251, with Maine and Montana rounding out the bottom three.
For a look at all the states, hover over the map or scroll down to the chart below. To enlarge the map, click on the plus sign in the upper left corner. Click the state to see more details.


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If This Person Can Pass the CPA Exam, So Can You EY Germany Gives 40 Partners and 380 Staff the Boot to Boost Profitability After That Whole Wirecard Thing Do Ex-Big 4 Accountants Make Good NFL Team CEOs? KPMG Vice Chair Hopes All the Tech Layoffs Will Scare College Kids Into Accounting Overcoming the Five Stages of Lease Accounting Grief
News November 25, 2022
Friday Footnotes: How EY Fights Poaching; Lack of Staff Is Closing Doors; Accounting to Biglaw? | 11.25.22
by Going Concern News Desk
FRC to fine Deloitte £440k over 2018 audit [Accountancy Today]
The Financial Reporting Council's Audit Quality team has issued a notice of a proposed sanction on Deloitte, proposing a regulatory penalty of £440k after it was determined that the Big Four firm failed to comply with the auditing framework in its audit of a listed company's 2018 financial statements. According to the FRC, it found serious failings in the reviewed audit, which demonstrated a "significant departure from the standards expected of a registered auditor".
KPMG Australia appoints first-ever head of metaverse future [Accounting Today]
KPMG has appointed software engineer and tech entrepreneur Alyse Sue as its new head of metaverse future, with the goal of creating a multimillion-dollar business based on metaverse technology and cryptocurrency over the next two years. Sue rejoined the Big Four firm after working as a senior consultant on the KPMG Innovate team between 2012 and 2015 before focusing on her own startup projects.
WATCH: EY global head of assurance talent on the firm's impending split [AccountancyAge]
EY's global head of assurance talent Dilek Cilingir on how the firm prevents poaching (timestamped):
Rising star PwC partner Shao Hong implicated in $3.3 million fraud [Consultancy.com.au]
A prominent partner of PwC in Australia has been accused of participating in a $3.3 million fraud perpetrated by her husband, according to a report from news publication the Australian. Shao Hong, noted as PwC's first Chinese-born audit partner on her ascension to the top ranks in 2018, is alleged to have joined or willfully ignored her husband Di Wu's activities in setting up an elaborate system of fake and altered invoices to defraud his employer.
Audit reform causing work to 'cascade down' through the market [AccountancyAge]
UK audit reform is inadvertently creating opportunities for challenger firms to pick up clients from the Big Four, according to James Hadfield, head of Menzies audit service. Changes are being introduced to better allow mid-tier firms to compete for Public Interest Entities (PIE) audits, and Hadfield believes these are already having another indirect impact. The accounting veteran adds that a wider lack of staff is causing some to "close their doors to new business," thus narrowing clients' options and raising audit fees.
FRC sets out good practice for audit scepticism [Accountancy Today]
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has published a new report setting out examples of good practice to improve auditor scepticism and challenge. According to the FRC high-quality auditing is about having the "right mindset and behaviours" as well as having "technical skills and expertise". It said that a critical attribute of an auditor's mindset and behaviour is "exercising professional scepticism and challenge" when performing audits. FRC considers four key elements of a good environment for scepticism and challenge: the learning environment, culture and operating model of the audit firm, as well as the interactions that the audit firm has with parties in the wider ecosystem.
Shakira Claims She's Victim of Smear Campaign in Spain Tax Fraud Case [TMZ]
The singer filed legal docs Friday in Spain, answering allegations she failed to pay more than $14 million in taxes for income earned from 2012 through 2014. Shakira says during that period, she was NOT a resident of Spain. According to the laws of the country, she's required to pay taxes if she spends 183 days or more there in a single year.
Republicans Preview Their Efforts to Block Forthcoming IRS Funding [Government Executive]
Republicans have threatened to upend the infusion of cash allocated to the Internal Revenue Service by the Inflation Reduction Act since virtually the moment President Biden signed it into law.
TIGTA: Taxpayers would benefit if IRS used digital communications tools appropriately [Journal of Accountancy]
TIGTA issued the audit report of the Taxpayer Digital Communication (TDC) program — titled More Should Be Done to Increase Use and Availability of the IRS's Taxpayer Digital Communication Tools — earlier this month. "Without commitment by IRS leadership to significantly expand the TDC program into IRS functions and operations that work directly with taxpayers, the IRS may be unable to meet the stated rights, goals, and objectives of the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, the IRS Strategic Plan, and the Taxpayer Experience Strategy," said the audit report from Heather M. Hill, deputy inspector general for audit.
If the idea of slogging through yet another busy season fills you with dread both existential and tangible, you might be interested in this remote Tax Manager position that promises 40-hour weeks year-round.
Two Albany accounting firms to combine forces [Times Union]
Two leading Albany-based accounting firms, BST & Co. CPAs, LLP and O'Connor & O'Connor CPAs, announced this week they will be combining forces in a new merger. The partnership, which will add four accountants to BST's team of more than 100 employees, will mark the second merger for BST in less than two years. (Last year, BST merged its wealth management division with The Affinity Group to create Affinity BST Advisors.) Ron Guzior, BST & Co. managing partner, said the 75-year-old accounting and management consulting firm is looking forward to partnering with O'Connor & O'Connor, which has been offering accounting and business advisory services to Capital Region clients for more than half a century.
'First' Accounting Firm in Metaverse Sucked Into FTX Meltdown [Bloomberg Tax]
An accounting firm that touts itself as the first to open its headquarters in the metaverse was accused in a lawsuit of turning a blind eye to a pattern of racketeering at FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange that collapsed causing billions of dollars in losses. Prager Metis CPAs LLC, an auditor for FTX, was sued by an investor who claims to have lost almost $20,000. Stephen Pierce also sued Armanino LLP, an auditor for FTX US, FTX's co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried and others — accusing all of them of a racketeering conspiracy.
Trump reported losing nearly $1B over 2 years on tax returns: accountant testifies [New York Post]
Former President Donald Trump reported losses on his tax returns each year for a decade – including close to $1 billion in a two-year span alone, his onetime accountant testified at trial this week. Donald Bender, a partner at accounting firm Mazars USA, took the stand in Manhattan Supreme Court Tuesday as part of the criminal tax fraud case against the Trump Organization. From 2009 to 2018, Bender said he filed 76-year-old Trump's taxes and "There are losses for all these years." Bender – who was called as the first defense witness and was given immunity for testifying before a grand jury – admitted upon questioning from prosecutors that in 2009 and 2010 alone Trump reported losing close to $1 billion.
Bermuda theft: Accountant faces losing pension for £1.7m theft [BBC]
Jeffrey Bevan made more than 50 fake payments to himself after moving with his family to work as a payment manager for Bermuda's accountant general. The 55-year-old, from Cwmbran, Torfaen, spent the cash on cars and properties and gambled away £500,000. He was jailed in 2018 for seven years and four months. Having served half his sentence Bevan was released from prison this week but returned to court as prosecutors sought to recoup more money from him. It is understood they are seeking funds from Bevan's pension now he is 55.
Ask A Legal Recruiter: Can Someone Lateral From An Accounting Firm Into Biglaw? [Above the Law]
Question: I'm curious to know what the market is right now for laterals in Biglaw, specifically tax. Can someone lateral from an accounting firm into Biglaw?
Recruiter Jessica Chin Somers: There is always a need for good tax lawyers in Biglaw, especially tax lawyers with law firm experience and good JD and LLM grades. However, because tax is a niche practice, it is not as easy to get many offers. Some tax practices really want candidates with specific types of tax experience (for example, securitization tax or bankruptcy tax) and so they will wait forever for the right candidate. Some transactional practices have a strong preference against tax planning candidates.
In the wake of "quiet quitting", fairness & respect seen as drivers of young accountant retention [Thomson Reuters]
The term quiet quitting has replaced the Great Resignation as the in-vogue term in the second half of 2022 to describe worker attitudes and actions in the post-pandemic world. Indeed, the term has been consuming the majority of media discussions of trends in work, particularly among younger workers.
Yet, despite all of the relatively negative workplace trends covered, the results from a Thomson Reuters Institute pulse survey taken in August didn't uncover the depth of negativity among younger workers employed at tax & accounting firms the media would have you believe. In fact, more than half of all young workers surveyed in the US and Canada reported that they are highly satisfied across a number of workplace factors, including: i) individual factors such as a feeling that I can be myself at work, opportunities for growth and career progression, flexibility, and a feeling that I am treated fairly and with respect; and ii) firmwide factors such as their firm's collaborative culture, current leadership, and direction and strategy.
Diving deeper into the data, you can see some differences in the top satisfaction factors between the US and Canada. In the US, for example, the top drivers of high satisfaction were a mixture of individual and firm factors, with individual factors sitting in the first and third spots. A large majority of respondents (79%) said they were very satisfied with the feeling that I can be myself at work; and 76% were very satisfied with the idea that I am treated fairly and with respect — and 78% said they were very satisfied with their firm's reputation.In Canada, on the other hand, the top drivers of high satisfaction were solely individual factors — I am treated fairly and with respect was cited by 76% of respondents and flexibility was cited by 74%.
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I was cleaning out pics on my phone and was reminded of something I saw on Reddit a few weeks back: a screenshot of someone's many, many, MANY CPA exam attempts over twelve years. Most people would have given up around the tenth attempt but this person persisted. And persisted. And persisted. So if you […]
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text:
File #: Res 1560-2017 Version: * Name: Establish the Commission to Study Reparations for African-Americans and to Recommend Remedies. (A.7274/S.5624)
Type: Resolution Status: Filed (End of Session)
Committee: Committee on State and Federal Legislation
On agenda: 6/21/2017
Title: Resolution calling upon the State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign A.7274/S.5624, which would establish the Commission to Study Reparations for African-Americans and to Recommend Remedies.
Sponsors: Inez D. Barron
Attachments: 1. Assembly Bill, 2. Senate Bill, 3. June 21, 2017 - Stated Meeting Agenda with Links to Files
12/31/2017 * Inez D. Barron City Council Filed (End of Session) Action details Meeting details Not available
6/21/2017 * Inez D. Barron City Council Referred to Comm by Council Action details Meeting details Not available
6/21/2017 * Inez D. Barron City Council Introduced by Council Action details Meeting details Not available
Res. No. 1560
Resolution calling upon the State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign A.7274/S.5624, which would establish the Commission to Study Reparations for African-Americans and to Recommend Remedies.
By Council Member Barron
Whereas, In 1991, during an excavation in preparation for the construction of a new federal building in Lower Manhattan, remains were unearthed revealing one of the largest, known early African-American cemeteries; and
Whereas, The African Burial Ground yielded the intact remains of over 400 men, women and children of African descent, spanning 6.6 acres and dating from the 1690s to the 1790s; and
Whereas, The burial ground served as a reminder that, although slavery in the United States is frequently associated with the early colonies and states of the South, until July 4, 1827 the owning of slaves was legal in New York; and
Whereas, According to the New York Historical Society, 41% of colonial New York City households owned slaves-a level of urban societal penetration that has been compared to Charleston, South Carolina, and
Whereas, At the time of the American Revolution over 10,000 African-Americans inhabited New York City; and
Whereas, In 1626, 11 African slaves were brought to New Amsterdam, as New York City, founded by the Dutch, was originally called, by the Dutch West India Company; and
Whereas, Slave labor cleared the land and built the walls along what would later become Wall Street, the City's first city hall, Trinity Church and Fraunces Tavern among other structures; and
Whereas, In 1711, a slave market was officially established on Wall Street between Pearl and Water Streets, which according to some reports operated for about 50 years; and
Whereas, During the American Revolution, the British dealt slavery in New York City a blow by offering freedom to slaves who would join their ranks; and
Whereas, Over 10,000 slaves came to New York, which was under British control and over 3,000 sailed away with British forces to Canada at the end of the war; and
Whereas, On July 4, 1799, The Gradual Emancipation Act of 1799 was enacted, which freed slave children born after that date, but indentured them until they were adults; and
Whereas, In 1817 the Abolition Act, which freed slaves born before 1799, but only after July 4, 1827; and
Whereas, On the threshold of widespread emancipation, the New York State Constitutional Convention of 1821 removed the property qualifications for ballot access for white men, but imposed a property qualification ($250) for blacks that effectively disenfranchised them; and
Whereas, In acknowledgement of the fundamental injustice of slavery in New York, A07274/S05624 would create the Commission to Study Reparations for African-Americans and to Recommend Remedies ("The Commission") and appropriate $250,000 to cover its expenses; and
Whereas, The Commission would consist of 14 members with one appointee by the Governor, the majority and minority leadership of the State Assembly and Senate-a total of five appointees; and
Whereas, The balance of the Commission would be appointed by the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America, the December 12th Movement and by Dr. Ron Daniels of the Institute of the Black World, with three appointees each; and
Whereas, The Commission would examine the slave trade, including the procurement, transport and sale of African slaves, as well as their treatment throughout this process; and
Whereas, The Commission would examine the institution of slavery that existed in the State and City of New York; and
Whereas, The Commission would examine the treatment of slaves in New York, including their deprivation of freedom, exploitation for labor and the destruction of family and culture; and
Whereas, The Commission would examine the extent to which the federal and state governments of the United States supported the institution of slavery; and
Whereas, The Commission would examine the various forms of discrimination in both the public and private sectors during the period between the Civil War and the present, as well as the lingering effects of the institution of slavery in the present day; and
Whereas, The Commission would recommend appropriate ways to educate the American public of its findings; and
Whereas, The Commission would also recommend remedies for suffering related to slavery, the slave trade and the lingering effects of the trade and the discrimination that followed, including whether the New York State Legislature should offer a formal apology on behalf of the United States for the perpetuation of slavery; and
Whereas, The Commission would also consider whether any form of compensation to the descendants of African slaves is warranted and offer recommendations accordingly; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign A.7274/S.5624, which would establish the Commission to Study Reparations for African-Americans and to Recommend Remedies.
LS 10969


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It's that time of year again. The time when the winter blues sets in on your beloved vehicle, and for those of you who prefer not to store away your precious ride for the winter, we have a few tips for keeping it performing perfectly despite the wind, snow, hail, and all manner of other struggles that come with winter driving.
Vehicles have come a long way since the days of the 20th century when winterizing a vehicle was absolutely mandatory to get the mildest amount of performance out of it and hope for it to survive until spring. With modern technology, however, a vehicle is so protected against the elements that owners often forego these hassles of the past, such as changing tires or belts, but along with the new technology comes some new and not so new challenges.
Changing the tire entirely for snow and ice with winter tires if permitted, or just keeping the pressure up in the tire with a compressor on your own or a quick visit to the performance shop.
Another way to regulate the pressure of your all-important rubber is to inflate the tires using nitrogen, which is more stable than traditional air. This can be done for a small fee at just about any performance shop.
Checking your battery is another element of winter driving which has remained largely the same as it was in the 20th century. Although batteries are more durable than ever, protecting themselves from the elements, they are still subject to the chemical reactions which come with their components and the bite of winter weather.
In particularly cold climates where snow is inevitable, and temperatures can drop to 5 degrees or below, the battery in your car is not generating the power necessary for your components to function optimally. Replacement of the battery to a winter specified battery could do the trick, or just simple maintenance of your current battery if it is new enough.
Another way to regulate battery power distribution to the components of your vehicle is to keep it charged. Many automotive manufacturers offer a battery charger for their vehicles which keeps the battery at healthy charge levels for times when you need it most, these charging systems are not very expensive, and will be worth it when your baby starts in the dead of night despite the approaching snow storm.
When the force of the snow becomes too overwhelming, it's time to break out the snow chains. This is truly answering brute nature with brute force. This method has prevailed through to the modern era and is still just as effective as ever at getting you through the most torrential of snowfall.
Cold weather can be misinterpreted as being less harsh on the components of humans and vehicles due to its cooler nature where engines seem to thrive as opposed to hot climates where their power is drained due to thinner air and lack of oxygen, but to the contrary, winter weather is much drier and harsh in many cases than the hotter climates where those characteristics are more often associated. Keeping your cars paint and overall components protected during the winter is just as important as protecting its core functioning components.
Applying a sealant and wax to the paint can keep it looking fresh and new, allowing it to weather the storm, much like lotion does for your skin during the winter, so that when spring comes, your car shines as if it hadn't just been through that most recent snowstorm that everyone is talking about.
A simple application of a windshield sealant can keep the snow and rain falling right off of your vehicle with ease. Much like the sealant and wax mentioned above will do for your paint, rain x and other hydrophobic windshield applicants are easy tools to utilize to maintain your all-important windshield clear so that you can keep your eyes on the road.
We love our vehicles; they transport our loved ones and keep us on the go when it is most important for those we love. They brave the winter storms and the beaming heat of summer and we hope these tips and tricks keep you safe this winter season, and for the road ahead. Your modern-day vehicle was meant to weather the storm, just treat it with its equal due and give it the necessary attention it deserves so that it can keep you on the road.
Concerned your vehicle isn't modern enough to brave the storm this winter? Head to Don Beyer Mazda to find the perfect car with all the modern tech and safety features!


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text:
Chancellor faces no-confidence vote over sanctuary campus
Jeremiah Poff Ohio Campus Correspondent @JJ_Poff on Dec 01, 2017 at 12:31 PM EDT
Faculty members are calling for a vote of no confidence against a community college district chancellor because she has been insufficiently supportive of their sanctuary campus efforts.
Chabot-Las Positas Community College District Chancellor Jannett Jackson expressed concerns that the designation would jeopardize federal funding, given the Trump administration's attempts to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities.
Chabot-Las Positas Community College District Chancellor Jannett Jackson is at odds with independent bodies on both the Chabot College and Las Positas College campuses, which feel she has not done enough to lobby the Board of Trustees to approve "sanctuary campus" resolutions slated for discussion on December 5.
"I believe that their discourse has not taken into account additional information, which may have mitigated their level of concern."
[RELATED: College pres: 'sanctuary' label 'could be counterproductive]
According to The Independent, Chabot College President Susan Sperling has expressed her "firm support" for declaring the school a sanctuary campus, but was met with criticism from the Faculty Senate when she suggested the use of "safe haven" as a compromise to alleviate Jackson's concerns over a potential loss of federal funding.
The Trump administration has threatened to withhold federal funding from cities and public institutions that refuse to cooperate with immigration enforcement agencies, though a federal judge blocked that action in November, leaving the matter in political limbo.
Although The Independent indicated that the Faculty Senates at both Chabot and Las Positas had called for a vote of no confidence, the district's public relations director, Guisselle Nuñez, told Campus Reform that only the Chabot Faculty Senate had approved such a resolution.
[RELATED: Ithaca College prez to retire following semester of student protests]
While Chabot College's Faculty Senate has several other issues with Jackson's leadership, including her alleged shunning of faculty input on new hires, its main concern is her hesitancy in accepting a resolution that would declare the campus a sanctuary for illegal immigrants.
In a recent press release, Jackson noted that she had not been notified in advance of the no-confidence vote, but remains open to discussion.
"As a former Academic Senate President, I understand and support the individuals in this group, and their right to state their opinion," she remarked. "I believe that their discourse has not taken into account additional information, which may have mitigated their level of concern."
[RELATED: Universities begin to declare themselves sanctuary campuses]
The release also stated that Jackson offered to meet with any senators on the faculty, student, or employee senates, noting that while she "was not contacted for the purposes of that type of meeting prior to their vote," her offer "still stands."
The sanctuary campus resolution is currently on the meeting agenda for the Board of Trustees' December 5 meeting, and while a vote of no confidence against Jackson is not currently on the agenda, The Independent speculates that it could arise during the open-comment portion of the meeting.
Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @JJ_Poff
Jeremiah Poff | Ohio Campus Correspondent
Jeremiah Poff is an Ohio Campus Correspondent, and reports liberal bias and abuse on campus for Campus Reform. He is a junior at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, where he studies journalism and works with Turning Point USA and Student Government.
4 Articles by Jeremiah Poff
Harvard prof calls for racial 'quota system' in higher ed
A visiting Harvard professor recently called for a "quota system" to ensure a sufficient number of minority students attend elite universities.
Jeremiah Poff Dec 04, 2017 - 12:26 PM EDT
Prof complains there are 'few liberal havens' in academia
"Many students and staff members regard me as a member of the liberal elite pushing overwrought theories of social inequity on the next generation."
Jeremiah Poff Nov 20, 2017 - 4:30 PM EDT
RA claims Catholic school tried to make him promote LGBTQ Mixer
Officials at Fairfield University, a Jesuit institution, allegedly required RAs to post flyers promoting a recent "LGBTQ Mixer" in their dorms.
Jeremiah Poff Nov 16, 2017 - 12:18 PM EDT
Virginia Tech RAs forced to attend LGBTQ event
RAs at Virginia Tech are being instructed to attend and document their attendance at LGBTQ+ events on campus to celebrate LGBTQ+ History month.
Jeremiah Poff Oct 10, 2017 - 11:13 AM EDT


text:
Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques
Molly L. Flexman, James M. Masciotti, Michael Khalil, Alisha Ling, Rabah Al Abdi, Randall L. Barbour, Andreas H. Hielscher
Breast cancer characteristics such as angiogenesis and hypoxia can be quantified by using optical tomography imaging to observe the hemodynamic response to an external stimulus. A digital near-infrared tomography system has been developed specifically for the purpose of dynamic breast imaging. It simultaneously acquires four frequency encoded wavelengths of light at 765, 808, 827, and 905nm in order to facilitate the functional imaging of oxy-and deoxy-hemoglobin, lipid concentration and water content. The system uses 32 source fibers to simultaneously illuminate both breasts. There are 128 detector fibers, 64 fibers for each breast, which deliver the detected light to silicon photo-detectors. The signal is conditioned by variable gain amplifiers and filters and is quantized by an analog to digital converter (ADC). The sampled signal is then passed on for processing using a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) prior to display on a host computer. The system can acquire 2.23 frames per second with a dynamic range of 236 dB.
Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE
https://doi.org/10.1117/12.809153
Optical Tomography and Spectroscopy of Tissue VIII - San Jose, CA, United States
Duration: Jan 25 2009 → Jan 27 2009
digital hardware.
Dynamic imaging
Optical Tomography
10.1117/12.809153
Dive into the research topics of 'Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.
Imaging systems Engineering & Materials Science 100%
breast Physics & Astronomy 99%
Imaging techniques Engineering & Materials Science 71%
Breast Medicine & Life Sciences 71%
Optical Tomography Medicine & Life Sciences 47%
Flexman, M. L., Masciotti, J. M., Khalil, M., Ling, A., Abdi, R. A., Barbour, R. L., & Hielscher, A. H. (2009). Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques. Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE, 7174, [71740N]. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.809153
Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques. / Flexman, Molly L.; Masciotti, James M.; Khalil, Michael; Ling, Alisha; Abdi, Rabah Al; Barbour, Randall L.; Hielscher, Andreas H.
In: Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE, Vol. 7174, 71740N, 2009.
Flexman, ML, Masciotti, JM, Khalil, M, Ling, A, Abdi, RA, Barbour, RL & Hielscher, AH 2009, 'Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques', Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE, vol. 7174, 71740N. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.809153
Flexman ML, Masciotti JM, Khalil M, Ling A, Abdi RA, Barbour RL et al. Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques. Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE. 2009;7174. 71740N. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.809153
Flexman, Molly L. ; Masciotti, James M. ; Khalil, Michael ; Ling, Alisha ; Abdi, Rabah Al ; Barbour, Randall L. ; Hielscher, Andreas H. / Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques. In: Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of SPIE. 2009 ; Vol. 7174.
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title = "Development of a dynamic optical tomographic breast imaging system with digital detection techniques",
abstract = "Breast cancer characteristics such as angiogenesis and hypoxia can be quantified by using optical tomography imaging to observe the hemodynamic response to an external stimulus. A digital near-infrared tomography system has been developed specifically for the purpose of dynamic breast imaging. It simultaneously acquires four frequency encoded wavelengths of light at 765, 808, 827, and 905nm in order to facilitate the functional imaging of oxy-and deoxy-hemoglobin, lipid concentration and water content. The system uses 32 source fibers to simultaneously illuminate both breasts. There are 128 detector fibers, 64 fibers for each breast, which deliver the detected light to silicon photo-detectors. The signal is conditioned by variable gain amplifiers and filters and is quantized by an analog to digital converter (ADC). The sampled signal is then passed on for processing using a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) prior to display on a host computer. The system can acquire 2.23 frames per second with a dynamic range of 236 dB.",
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AB - Breast cancer characteristics such as angiogenesis and hypoxia can be quantified by using optical tomography imaging to observe the hemodynamic response to an external stimulus. A digital near-infrared tomography system has been developed specifically for the purpose of dynamic breast imaging. It simultaneously acquires four frequency encoded wavelengths of light at 765, 808, 827, and 905nm in order to facilitate the functional imaging of oxy-and deoxy-hemoglobin, lipid concentration and water content. The system uses 32 source fibers to simultaneously illuminate both breasts. There are 128 detector fibers, 64 fibers for each breast, which deliver the detected light to silicon photo-detectors. The signal is conditioned by variable gain amplifiers and filters and is quantized by an analog to digital converter (ADC). The sampled signal is then passed on for processing using a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) prior to display on a host computer. The system can acquire 2.23 frames per second with a dynamic range of 236 dB.
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text:
Iraq to Investigate Killing of Protesters
By Editor on 27th May 2020 in Politics, Security
By Omar Sattar for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.
Iraq to launch investigations against killing of protesters
The new Iraqi government has begun procedures to reinvestigate the violent acts during the popular protests that broke out in October and killed more than 700 people and injured over 25,000.
The decision was greatly welcomed at home and in the international arena.
The United Nations Security Council called for "transparency during the investigation."
Protesters demand UN Protection from State Violence UN details Ordeal of Abducted Protesters
UK Drops Unaoil-related Probe into ABB
Criticism in Iraqi Kurdistan over Unpaid Teacher Salaries
Tags: featured, Human rights, mn, Protests, Security Council


I've had to, from time-to-time, create users on Linux boxes that need to connect via IMAP to get email, but they can't SSH or login to the server.
There are certainly more elaborate ways to solve this problem, but here's my ghetto solution.
When creating the user set their shell to /bin/false.
Now when gack tries to SSH into the server, he can't get in. But gack can get email via IMAP using SSL to encrypt gack's password. The SSL part isn't technically necessary, but only a fool would be sending plain text passwords around like that.
I remember researching this and I initially I thought the –disabled-login on useradd would do the trick, but no. It's strange, on my Debian server, the man page for useradd doesn't even mention –disabled-login, but it's totally an option.
The problem is that while –disabled-login does in fact disable the login, it does so by putting an ! in the /etc/shadow file for the user's password. If the user's password in the /etc/shadow file is an exclamation point, they can't login, but they also can't get email either, since they're account is disabled. It makes sense.
If however, you set the user's shell to /bin/false, she can get email but can't login via SSH.
And if you forget the –shell parameter when calling useradd, you can just edit the /etc/passwd file and set it there.


Kris Gunnars presents 6 Healthy Sugars That Can Kill You posted at Authority Nutrition, saying, "Many natural sugars are marketed as healthy, but they are just as bad (if not worse) than regular sugar. Here are 6 'healthy" sugars that can kill you."
Kevin Geary presents The Definitive Guide to Calories posted at The Rebooted Body, saying, "Your permission slip and ultimate reference point for ending the obsession with calorie counting and tracking."
Ruth presents Paleo Cooking: Like Regular Cooking, Only Better posted at Paleo Diet Basics, saying, "Sometimes the changes between a paleo and a non-paleo meal are subtle, but they make all the difference."
Eileen Laird presents Angie's Success Story posted at Phoenix Helix, saying, "Angie Alt has 3 autoimmune conditions: celiac disease, endometriosis and an autoimmune skin condition. During the 15 years it took for her to be fully diagnosed, she endured numerous hospital visits, extreme pain, and psychiatric symptoms that made her consider checking herself into a mental hospital. The gut-brain connection is real, folks! The Paleo Autoimmune Protocol not only restored her physical health, but her mental health as well."
Steve Kirsch presents The Serious Post (Time to make a change?) posted at The Paleo Drummer, saying, "There's an age that you'll reach when suddenly you have to stop screwing around and get serious about good health, nutrition, exercise and sleep. This one's about noticing before it's too late."
Neely Quinn presents What's The Right Serving Size for Me? posted at Paleo Plan.
Max presents Why I Stopped Following The Paleo Diet posted at CavemanCollege.
Nell Stephenson presents Paleoista's Holiday Tip of the Day is Back! posted at Paleoista, by Nell Stephenson, saying, "Paleo expert Nell Stephenson invites readers to email her with questions to be used for her annual Paleoista's holiday tip of the day blog posts for all of December."
Sean Coonce presents Crock Pot Carne Asada posted at FreeRange Human, saying, "Simple and delicious 'set it and forget it' recipe for making Carne Asada in the crock pot for those colder months when grilling isn't an option."
Melissa,a.k.a. Cavechic presents Need your feed backon paleo related topics posted at Paleo Connections, saying, "I'm trying to provide to my readers, posts on topics relevant to them that they may not be seeing elsewhere AND, I'm looking for design ideas for paleo t-shirts that go beyond what is typically found out there now. Help me, help you have a better paleo experience."
Melissa,a.k.a. Cavechic presents National Nutrition Month is coming! Paleo-cane is too. posted at Paleo Connections, saying, "Join me in prepping for releasing an onslaught of paleo nutritional information during National Nutritional month coming up in March 2014. I'm sure there will be a lot of misinformation being spread from bad nutrition dogma sources. Stop by and see suggestions on what to write about and how to prepare for a blogging hurricane of paleo information or (paleo-cane)."
Jennifer Brand, aka Alliefitfoodie presents Paleo chocolaty chunk cookies posted at Alliefitfoodie, saying, "I participated in another round of Paleo Pen Pals for the month of November. My pen pal sent me total awesomeness. A 100% cacao bar. I decided to doctor up a cookie recipe I created some time back, that I had been meaning to try again. These puppies came out AMAZING!"
Diane Sanfilippo presents 5 Questions with Caitlin Weeks Author of Mediterranean Paleo Cooking and Giveaway! posted at Balanced Bites, saying, "This week I am excited to share an interview with Caitlin Weeks, a certified Nutrition Consultant, author of the blog Grass Fed Girl and co-author (with her professionally-trained chef husband Nabil Boumrar) of the newly released eBook, Mediterranean Paleo Cooking.Caitlin is also generously giving away a copy of Mediterranean Paleo Cooking to THREE lucky readers!"
Melissa Joulwan presents Paleo (AIP Friendly) Maple Shortbread posted at The Clothes Make The Girl, saying, "5 ingredients transform into grain-free, AIP-friendly shortbread just in time for Christmas!"
Sam presents Chocolate Mug Cake posted at Bacon it Paleo, saying, "quick and easy two minute chocolate mug cake."


text:
Filters: First Letter Of Last Name is D [Clear All Filters]
Dörr, Margarete. Wer die Zeit nicht miterlebt hat...: Frauenerfahrungen im Zweiten Weltkrieg und in den Jahren danach. Frankfurt/M; New York: Campus Verlag, 1998.
Durham, Martin. Women and fascism. New York, U.S.A.: Routledge, 1998.
Day, Frances Martin, Phyllis Spence, and Barbara Ladouceur. Women Overseas: Memoirs of the Canadian Red Cross Corps (Overseas Detachment). Vancouver, B.C.: Ronsdale Press, 1998.
Women Overseas: Memoirs of the Canadian Red Cross Corps (Overseas Detachment), Edited by Frances Martin Day, Phyllis Spence and Barbara Ladouceur. Vancouver, BC: Ronsdale Press, 1998.
Dragojevic, Srdjan. The Wounds. FR Yugoslavia: RTS; Cobra Films, 1998.
British Barracks, 1660–1914: Their Architecture and Role in Society, Edited by James Douet and Andrew Saunders. London: Stationary Office, 1997.
Damousi, Joy. Depraved and Disorderly: Female Convicts, Sexuality and Gender in Colonial Australia. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997.
Delmas, Jean. Histoire militaire de la France : De 1715 à 1871, Edited by André Corvisier. Vol. 2. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1997.
D'Emilio, John, and Estelle B. Freedman. Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America. 2nd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997.
Dragojevic, Srdjan. Pretty Village, Pretty Flame. U.G.C. Worldwide Distribution, 1997.
DeBauche, Leslie Midkiff. Reel Patriotism: The Movies and World War I. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1997.
Drabo, Adama. Skirt Power. United States: California Newsreel, 1997.
Donner, Henriette. "Under The Cross—Why V.A.D.s Performed the Filthiest Task in the Dirtiest War: Red Cross Women Volunteers, 1914–1918." Journal of Social History 30, no. 3 (1997): 687-704.
Daniel, Ute. The War from Within: German Working-Class Women in the First World War. Oxford, UK ; New York: Berg, 1997.
Daly, Mary E. "Women & Pacifism in Ireland, 1915-1932." In Women & Irish History: Essays in Honour of Margaret Maccurtain, edited by Maryann Gialanella Valiulis and Mary O'Dowd. Dublin: Wolfhound Press, 1997.
Dunn, Seamus, and T.G. Fraser. Europe and Ethnicity : The First World War and Contemporary Ethnic Conflict. New York, United States: Routledge, 1996.
Darrow, Margaret H. "French Volunteer Nursing and the Myth of War Experience in World War I." The American Historical Review 101, no. 1 (1996): 80-106.
Demczyna, Tonia, and Ruth Howard. From East to West. Belleville, ON: Essence, 1996.
Dandeker, Christopher, and Mady Wechsler Segal. "Gender Integration in Armed Forces: Recent Policy Developments in the United Kingdom." Armed Forces and Society 23, no. 1 (1996): 29-47.
The Japanese Wartime Empire, 1931-1945, Edited by Peter Duus, Ramon Hawley Myers and Mark R. Peattie. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1996.
de Erauso, Catalina. Lieutenant Nun: Memoir of a Basque Transvestite in the New World. Boston: Beacon Press, 1996.
Domansky, Elizabeth. "Militarization and Reproduction in World War I." In Society, Culture, and the State in Germany, 1870-1930, edited by Geoff Eley, 427-464. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1996.
Draskovic, Boro. Vukovar, Jedna Prica. Vukovar Poste Restante. FR Yugoslavia: Varnica, 1996.
Dugaw, Dianne. Warrior Women and Popular Balladry, 1650-1850. 2nd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
Delbo, Charlotte. Aushwitz and After. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1995.


The Joshua Ringel Memorial Reading celebrates its 14th season on Sunday, April 10, when poets Carolyn Forche and special guest Nikola Madzirov read from their work at 5 p.m. in the Baltimore Museum of Art's Meyerhoff Auditorium. The event is sponsored by Johns Hopkins' Center for Talented Youth.
Forche is the author of four books of poetry. Her first collection, Gathering the Tribes, won the Yale Series of Younger Poets Award. In 1977, she received a John Simon Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship, which enabled her to travel to El Salvador, where she worked as a human rights advocate. Her second book, The Country Between Us, received the Poetry Society of America's Alice Fay di Castagnola Award and was the Lamont Selection of the Academy of American Poets. In 1994, her third book of poetry, The Angel of History, was chosen for the Los Angeles Times Book Award. Her fourth book of poems, Blue Hour, was published by HarperCollins in spring 2003.
BOA Editions has just published in the United States a selection of Madzirov's poetry titled Remnants of Another Age.
A question-and-answer session and a book signing with the authors will immediately follow the reading. Books will be available for purchase at the door. Seats are limited, so those wishing to attend should email ctypr@jhu.edu with their name and number of seats requested. More information is available at www.cty.jhu.edu/ringel.


We're excited to announce our third annual Driving Derby in conjunction with the Nashoba Carriage Classic, and we're thrilled that for the second year we will be including an elegant Sidesaddle Division as well. The disciplines of carriage driving and sidesaddle take us back in time to another era. Join us at the Germantown Charity Horse Show grounds in gorgeous Germantown, Tennessee, for our 20th edition of the Nashoba Carriage Classic!


4205 Westinghouse Commons is a 123,333 square foot single tenant industrial building located in Charlotte, North Carolina. This 7.9 acre site was developed in 2001 and the building features 22' clear height, 6 dock-high doors, 2 drive-in doors, 218 parking stalls and rear loading capability. The site is a part of the Westlake master-planned business park, one of the premier corporate industrial parks in Charlotte. It is conveniently located and within minutes to I-485 and Charlotte-Douglas International Airport.


text:
Q: Fabric - "fit" mode for images instead of stretching on resize I'm using Fabric to display an image in a canvas. By default, the resize action stretches the image by breaking its aspect ratio. Is there an option I can use to avoid stretching the image but allow the control box to be resized?

const canvas = new fabric.Canvas('demo', {
  backgroundColor: '#DDDEEE',
  centeredScaling: true,
  centeredRotation: true
});
const CANVAS_WIDTH = 540;
const CANVAS_HEIGHT = CANVAS_WIDTH;
canvas.setDimensions({ width: CANVAS_WIDTH, height: CANVAS_HEIGHT });

fabric.Image.fromURL('https://via.placeholder.com/300', (img) => {
  canvas.add(img);
});
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<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <base href="/">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/fabric.js/5.2.4/fabric.min.js"></script>
</head>
<body class="mat-typography">
<canvas id="demo"></canvas>
</body>
</html>

resize and fit

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: how to make queries find in mongoose with condition where value a == b? how to make queries find in mongoose with condition where value user == to ?
this is the json data:
{
    "_id": {
        "$oid": "5ad8096151fe2d391cae9110"
    },
    "user": {
        "$oid": "5acc15622ec84a0bb4200fdb"
    },
    "to": {
        "$oid": "5acc16e92ec84a0bb4200fdc"
    },
    "message": "hello",
    "status": "pending",
    "created": {
        "$date": "2018-04-19T03:13:37.257Z"
    },
    "__v": 0
}